Quirky hardboiled musical about a pulp novelist (Robert Downey Jr.) hospitalized for a severe skin disorder who imagines himself the title character of his dime-store detective stories -- a crooning 1950s-era gumshoe -- in order to exorcise the personal demons that have plagued him since childhood, aided along the way by an eccentric psychiatrist (Mel Gibson). Based on the offbeat British TV miniseries, director Keith Gordon's genre-bending potboiler combines black comedy, expressionist film noir and vintage rock 'n' roll, resulting in an unevenly engaging portrait of a man trying to reclaim his soul. Several raw sexual encounters with partial nudity, some violence, much rough and crude language. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is L -- limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted.